In conducting certain surgical procedures, such as total hip arthroplasty (“THA”), the surgeon relies on radiographic images to help guide the proper placement of the prosthesis. Unfortunately, even with current technology, any surgeon is likely to admit that a quality intraoperative X-ray cannot be achieved. Trying to get a quality X-ray of a patient can be time consuming and exposes the patient to more radiation than desirable. The surgeon has to wait as the film is taken to another location for processing and brought back for review. If there are any problems with the film, the X-ray must be taken again. As such, there is no convenient intraoperative technique available for achieving perfect prosthesis placement every time.
For the foregoing reasons there is a need for a system that allows the surgeon to acquire a high-quality radiographic image that can be processed in the operating room so as to minimize the overall surgical procedure time and potential excess radiation exposure.